The present invention relates to a method for easy receiving manipulation of broadcast receiving apparatus by interactive operation for reception, selection and display, in a broadcast receiving apparatus for receiving broadcast (mainly digital broadcast) through satellites, cables, or normal terrestrial broadcast having multiple channels.
In general conventional television receivers, by pressing a channel key of a remote controller, the channel corresponding to the key number is selected. The number of channels is few, and the channel numbers can be expressed in two digits, and channel selection operation is easy. In digital broadcast, there are extremely many channels, and channel numbers are usually expressed in three digits. An example of display of the channel number being received on the display screen is shown in FIG. 46. In FIG. 46, channel number 145 is overlaid on the picture in the upper right corner of the screen of aspect ratio of 4:3. This partial on-screen display (partial OSD) for displaying the channel number by occupying part of the picture is generated by a partial OSD processing device. Aside from the channel number, moreover, icon or message may be shown in partial OSD in part of the picture.
Wide broadcast for broadcasting a wide screen of aspect ratio of 16:9 is also available. FIG. 45 (a) shows a screen of reception of wide broadcast by a television receiver with a display screen of aspect ratio of 4:3. In FIG. 45 (a), a letter box format wide picture 141 indicated by rectangle is accompanied by blank areas 143 (indicated by hatching) in upper and lower portions, having no video signal.
The wide television broadcast receiver having a display screen corresponding to the wide broadcast of aspect ratio 16:9 detects the blank areas 143, and changes the picture shape, which is called auto-wide processing, so that the wide broadcast picture of aspect ratio of 16:9 is displayed in the whole display screen of aspect ratio of 16:9. See FIG. 45 (b).
The television receiver has a function for presetting only specific channels for the ease of selection of desired channels, which is called the preset channel function. Accordingly, calculating the frequency of viewing and frequency of reserving, it has been already proposed to arrange the channel setting corresponding to preset key numbers automatically in the sequence of frequency of viewing or frequency of reserving (see Japanese Patent Application No. 7-272668).
As a method of confirming other broadcast program while viewing (off-screen program), in many conventional television receivers, since the number of channels is relatively small, the screen is divided into 3.times.3 nine sub-screens or 4.times.4 sixteen sub-screens, and moving pictures are displayed.
Digital broadcasting can be multiple in functions. The user can set various functions and select various items of multiple functions interactively through the screen.
One of the representative tools for interactive operation is the personal computer. In the personal computer, since the number of items to be set is great, the display of hierarchical structure is employed as a method of displaying multiple setting items.
In the display method of hierarchical structure, the main menu panel is at the top, and menu panels of plural layers of tree structure are prepared beneath it. When one item is selected and instructed out of plural items in the main menu panel, the display is changed over to the menu panel of the second layer corresponding to this item. The menu panel of the second layer also has plural items, and when one item is selected and instructed among them, the display is also changed over to the menu panel of the third layer corresponding to that item. Thereafter, the same operation is repeated to go into deeper layers gradually, and the desired function and item are selected.
It may be considered to apply such method into broadcast receiving apparatus, in particular, the digital broadcast receiving apparatus. But it has the following problems.
In one of the practical examples of interactive operation through screen for setting of various functions and selection of various items in broadcast receiving apparatus, the program information is displayed on the screen in a format of program lists, and various functions are set and various items are selected by using it (see FIG. 48). This program list is partitioned into small rectangular frames (called cells), and the vertical direction denotes the time axis and the lateral direction represents the channel axis. This program list is fixed in the display width per hour.
The user contracts with a broadcast provider about viewing channels, and receives. The user, making use of the displayed program list, selects the program, reserves recording, or reserves viewing.
When reserving to record a program or reserving to view, the user changes over to the customize screen. On this customize screen, the user can order program recording reservation or viewing reservation, select or set a request. Specific broadcast programs are paid programs, and when viewing a paid program, the charge is accounted.
An IC card containing the subscribed channel information is set in the broadcast receiving apparatus, and the program purchases procedure, reception control, and charge control are done in this IC card. The broadcast provider accesses the IC card through a telephone circuit to acquire the charge record information relating to the purchased programs in the broadcast receiving apparatus of each user. The modem built in the broadcast receiving apparatus is connected parallel to the public telephone circuit together with telephone, facsimile apparatus or personal computer.
The IC card charges the amount for every purchased program, stores the history of charge record information, calls by the telephone circuit through the modem when the quantity of information reaches a specific value, and transmits the charge record information to the broadcast provider through the telephone circuit.
As mentioned above, digital broadcasting has extremely many channels, and the channel display is given in three digits. Because of three digits, the user is often confused when selecting channels. It hence requires a help for the user to select the channels correctly.
In the case of partial on-screen display processing in a broadcast receiving apparatus having a display screen of aspect ratio 4:3, when the received broadcast is an ordinary broadcast of aspect ratio 4:3, the channel number is displayed as shown in FIG. 46. If, however, the received television broadcast is the wide broadcast mentioned above, part or whole of the channel number to be displayed is out of the wide screen 144 as shown in FIG. 47 (b), and gets into the blank region as shown by reference numeral 145a. That is, part or whole of the channel number 145a is not displayed.
Besides, concerning the preset channel function, since there are many channels, it is more complicated than before to select channels to be preset, and select preset channels.
To cope with the multiple functions, when the hierarchical display used in the personal computer is applied in the broadcast receiving apparatus, the following problems are known.
When the hierarchical display used in the personal computer is directly applied, there are too many problems. Most users of broadcast receiving apparatus are general household members, and are not accustomed to such hierarchical display, and are often complete laymen about its manipulation. On the other hand, as mentioned above, the broadcast receiving apparatus of digital broadcast is multiple in functions, and the user can make various settings interactively through the screen. Accordingly, to employ hierarchical display in broadcast receiving apparatus of digital broadcast, it is necessary to facilitate understanding and manipulation of hierarchical display. It is therefore necessary to employ a new hierarchical display not used in ordinary computers.
Regarding the program list, it is desired to present as many programs as possible. However, since the display screen area is fixed, so many programs cannot be displayed at the same time. Besides, the display screen of the broadcast receiving apparatus is viewed from a relatively distant position unlike the personal computer, and the display characters cannot be too small, which is another factor of limiting the number of display characters.
For program display, it is desired to display many channels for many hours. But the space assigned for unit time is narrow, and the number of programs to be displayed is limited. As a result, the display region per program is narrow, the quantity of information is small, or the whole name of the program cannot be displayed in the cell, and a long name is cut off halfway and specific content cannot be displayed. It hence brings about problems in ease of manipulation and sense of manipulation.
To confirm the off-screen programs in the broadcast receiving apparatus of digital broadcast, since there are too many channels, it is difficult to confirm the off-screen programs in the conventional system of television receiver to divide into sub-screens and display moving pictures because each screen becomes too small. It is hence necessary to facilitate confirmation of off-screen programs and manipulation of channel selection by some way or other.
The user selects a program, reserves to record and reserves to view by utilizing the displayed program list and customize screen, but what must be noted is that one must keep memory of the channel number to be processed or other off-screen program during manipulation.
Reservation to record or reservation to view involves other problems. Suppose the remote controller is manipulated during reservation, and when the manipulation is accepted, the reservation to view may be canceled unexpectedly. Instead, if the system is locked during reservation, other program cannot be viewed. If unlocked, execution of reservation is uncertain as in the case above. Moreover, if the power source of the display unit (the CRT device and display means for sending video signal to the display device such as CRT device) is turned off, the tuner is working, and when viewing is reserved, its charge may be accounted although the reserved program is not actually seen.
The IC card charges the amount for every purchased program, stores the history of charge record information, calls by the telephone circuit through the modem when the quantity of information reaches a specific value, and transmits the charge record information to the broadcast provider through the telephone circuit. The user does not know at all when such call is made. The user does not known when the IC card processes such charging.
If attempted to ring, send facsimile message or make PC communications at the timing of access to the modem, the telephone circuit is already occupied by the modem, and the user cannot use such terminal devices. This disabled state is quite unexpected for the user and it is very inconvenient. It is therefore desired that the occupation of telephone circuit by access of the broadcast receiving apparatus to the modem should be known.
The IC card is usually detachable, but it must be always set in the broadcast receiving apparatus. But it is possible that the IC card is removed by the user by accident, or by a child out of mischief. If the removal timing is during access to the IC card, the processing action may be unexpectedly interrupted, or the internal information may be broken. Moreover, if the IC card is removed, the program of subscribed channel cannot be viewed. It is hence desired for the user to known whether the IC card is being accessed or not.
In the existing broadcast receiving apparatus, the user cannot know directly the charge record information from a certain time up to the present time. It is one of the anxieties for the user. For example, possibly, the child may purchase programs one after another to result in a tremendous charge amount, or can secretly purchase a paid program with age limit. It is therefore desired that the user can know the charge record information.